There has been no increase over the past year in the proportion of retail leases where rents are paid monthly, the BRC said this morning.
Its second annual Monthly Rents Survey found that 12% of retail leases are on monthly terms, exactly the same figure as last year. The survey covered retailers occupying a total 13,400 stores.
Monthly terms were more common where leases where renewed but remained hard to achieve at rent review. 48% of lease renewals included monthly rents, but they were only secured 6% of the time at rent review. Both figures have fallen since last year’s survey.
The only positive news from this year’s survey was that where monthly rents have been agreed, the proportion of deals where the arrangement is permanent has risen to two-thirds.
Rents have historically been paid quarterly in advance based on religious festivals, with the next so-called quarter day falling on Christmas Day. The BRC argues that the system is out of date and that monthly payments should be the norm.
“Quarterly rents are a throwback to a bygone age,” said BRC director general Stephen Robertson (pictured). “While it’s clear that some landlords have moved a long way on offering retailers a more flexible rents regime, there’s a significant proportion that have not.”
No comments yet